


Rootstock - Background Information

by lizard_socks



Series: Rootstock [1]
Category: Original Work
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-02
Updated: 2021-02-04
Packaged: 2021-03-04 17:47:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,175
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25070371
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lizard_socks/pseuds/lizard_socks
Summary: Information about the characters and setting.
Series: Rootstock [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1778194





	1. Setting & Characters

# Continuity

Each story in this series takes place about 380 years after the date of publication, so the series starts in the year 2400.  


The following are in continuity:  


  * All "prime universe" _Star Trek_ shows and movies (including _Picard_ and _Discovery_ )
  * The Kasheetan section of the _Star Trek IV_ FASA RPG sourcebook
  * [Sirustep](https://archiveofourown.org/works/29169309) (2397) - a Stargate SG-1 fic  

  * [Pyrite](https://archiveofourown.org/works/19321465) (2397) - a Star Trek: Voyager / Steven Universe fic  

  * [Leaf the Monster](https://archiveofourown.org/works/18842749) (2260s)
  * The 2005 movie _Fever Pitch_



Each story brings in worldbuilding elements from a different fandom, but each has an all-OC cast, with no canon characters.  


* * *

#  _Rootstock_

Iroshar IV, or simply Iroshar, is the Iroshan capital. The planet is "governed" by the Iroshan Chamber, a body originally formed as a business coalition, but due to constant infighting and polarization, it's unable to wield any real power, and most decisions happen at the local level. Iroshan society is strongly capitalist; in fact, the Chamber was able to force a merger with the Ferengi Alliance by out-competing them. Unlike on Ferenginar, outright bribery is rare, but ongoing casual exploitation is accepted by most Iroshans as the price to pay for not having to trust anyone - their government, their employer, or their neighbors - to take care of them.

General Interplanetary (GI) is a relatively small starship operator based in North Wind City, an Iroshan city about the size of modern-day Chicago. The zhr Fer Nessellar is the only CEO the young company has ever had, and it was she who set aside a single transport ship from the company's fleet to handle jobs that take them outside Alliance space, to places where Iroshans might not be welcome. Employees come and go on temporary assignment, but the _Rootstock_ 's permanent officers - Sheleth, Misam, Ashley, Pyrite, and Leaf - all come from planets outside the Alliance.  


The _Rootstock_ itself was launched in 2399 with a configuration identical to the company's other transport ships. The most striking feature of the ship's interior might be the long, narrow layout of the bridge. Sheleth, the ship's captain, has a non-humanoid skeletal structure, and prefers to stand whenever possible.  


The ship contains a medical bay, a holodeck, and crew quarters. Most of the interior space, though, is taken by guest quarters, which are highly configurable; they can be collapsed to make room for cargo, or filled with water to transport aquatic species more comfortably.  


* * *

# Crew  


**Ashley Dekker  
**

Human  
Female - Bisexual

Place of birth: Paramaribo, Suriname (Aug. 9, 1989)  
Native language: Dutch  
Age: 31  
Height: 6'4"  
Role: Security and administrative officer  


At the age of 18, Ashley found herself in the far future: the year 2387. The world around her had changed; not only had poverty and many forms of discrimination been eliminated on Earth, but aliens were everywhere in Paramaribo, which had become a tourist destination for extraterrestrial travelers. She chose a new first name to better reflect her gender identity - back in the early 2000s, the only people who she'd ever come out to as transgender were her parents and siblings, who were incredibly supportive. But knowing that she would never see them again, and that the Paramaribo of the future wasn't the same city she had grown up in, she left her old family and planet behind and resolved to build a new life for herself.  


Ashley is ambitious, resourceful, and driven by the need to accomplish something, to create something she can call her own.  


* * *

**Sharona Misam  
**

Caitian / Goa'uld  
Male - Heterosexual

Place of birth: Unknown Starfleet ship (Oct. 30, 2360)  
Native language: Caitian Ter Sar  
Age: 40  
Height: 5'0"  
Role: Science officer  


Misam was born on his species' homeworld of Cait, but grew up on a starship with most of his clan, including his Starfleet officer parents and his four siblings. However, he didn't develop the close familial relationships that most Caitians did, and so after finishing school, he left for Earth (where he studied xenobiology at Princeton), then spent a few years as a Starfleet officer on a mostly human ship.  


After Starfleet's attempt to evacuate Romulus was cancelled and the ship he served on was sent back to Federation space against the wishes of its crew, Misam felt very much like a small fish in a big pond. He decided to leave the Federation for the Ferengi Alliance and the planet Iroshar, feeling that he could make a difference there, even if it was only to a few other people.  


Although Misam is an intelligent and knowledgeable scientist, and believes in his work, he values artistic endeavors even more - from complex Romulan novels to silly 80s music videos.  


* * *

**Pyrite, facet 4A, cut 4XB**  


Gem  
Cisgender nonbinary - Asexual

Place of birth: Unknown Gem colony planet (Jan. 3, 1840)  
Native language: ???  
Age: 560  
Height: 4'10"  
Role: Engineer  


The first four Gems to exist - the Diamonds - became the monarchial rulers of their empire. Together, they created the rest of their race by colonizing nearby planets and using their essence to draw the life out of them. However, their expansion came to an abrupt halt when they encountered Klingon space on one side, and Romulan space on the other; the two organic races were easily able to outnumber the Gems while matching their firepower, depriving the Gems of resources and halting their production. 

Gem culture was built around the (mistaken) idea that each Gem had a fixed purpose and role in society, and Pyrites had been among the least prestigious types - most of them had been harvested during attempts to grow other, more "valuable" Gems. One of them was sent to a captured starship, and quickly learned how to repair and maintain the aliens' technology. Although her accomplishments were little-known, she earned the confidence of her superiors and took satisfaction in her work. Pyrite found she fit well into Gem society, but she was acutely aware of its issues. With nobody to talk to, and no clear way to help make a change without risking her only source of comfort, Pyrite eventually came to think of herself as a villain and a coward.  


Although the Gems were well-known in certain parts of Federation space, little cohesive information about them made its way to interstellar databases until the late 2390s, when a human from Earth was found to be Pink Diamond's heir. This revelation quickly lead to a number of reforms on the Gem homeworld. Pyrite was relieved, but also - if she was being honest - somewhat uncomfortable being surrounded by people expressing their love for each other, a feeling that she was unable to relate to. When she received a job offer from a small Iroshan transport company, she took the opportunity to leave Gem space for the first time in her life and hopefully start to understand other people's experiences.  


* * *

**Leaf the Monster  
**

Monster  
Male - Bisexual

Place of birth: A spooky dungeon (September 20, 2247)  
Native language: French  
Age: 152  
Height: 5'7"  
Role: Just being available  


Leaf is a monster from the planet of Kaolack II. His brother, a wolf-like creature, is the guardian / final boss of a dungeon. His late half-sister, a slime, was born to a human father and went to live her life among the humans.

Somewhere around 2270, a monster named Pinecone granted his own immortality to Leaf, believing that he could help improve relationships between humans and monsters. Every monster has a singular obsession that drives them; Leaf's is humanity, and the _Rootstock_ 's regular visits to North Wind City give him plenty of opportunities to interact with them up close. He's hoping to build up a good resumé so he can someday join Starfleet.  


* * *

**Sheleth  
**

Kasheeta  
Female - Not interested in anyone but Bsictiu

Place of birth: Lo' Luth (July 8, 2379)  
Native language: Federation Standard  
Age: 21  
Height: 8"1' when upright / 5"6' in normal posture  
Role: Captain  


Sheleth grew up in a domed city on the snowy, post-apoctolyptic planet of Kashet, but she was always interested in what lay beyond its walls. As a young woman, she met a Kasheeta from "the outside" named Bsictiu Noe, and the two of them joined Starfleet together. Bsictiu was the only person Sheleth ever loved, and when he sacrified himself to save the USS _Rhode Island_ in 2398, Sheleth knew she could never be on a Starfleet ship again without thinking of him.  


Now the captain of the _Rootstock_ , she's dedicated to the safety of the ship and its passengers, but prone to second-guessing her own decisions. She's also an avid holoprogrammer. Her most popular program is the _Non-Humanoid Biathlon Training Program_ , but the one she's most proud of is the _Supplimentary Mess Hall_ : a recreation of the _Rootstock_ 's mess hall, complete with replicated food.


	2. Supporting Characters & Species

## Supporting Characters

* * *

**Deb Morrison  
**

Human / Sorquine  
Female - Heterosexual

Place of birth: Earth's moon (February 20, 2358)  
Native language: English  
Age: 42  
Height: 6'0"  
Occupation: Doctor/nurse for General Interplanetary, specializing in treatment of aliens  


Deb got her medical degree on Earth, but it was joining Starfleet that changed her - literally. Caught in a shuttle accident in a conflict zone, Deb was near death when a light purple blob floated into her craft and wrapped itself around her. When she came to, she found that the substance had brought her back to life by turning her into one of them.  


After retiring from Starfleet, she traveled around the quadrant treating other sorquines before eventually winding up on Iroshar.  


* * *

**Skylar Martinez**  


Human  
Agender - Hates everyone  


Place of birth: ??? (October 7, 2372)  
Native language: Spanish  
Age: 28  
Height: 5'3"  
Occupation: Self-identified supervillain / minor annoyance  


Skylar can't trust people, and they can't make friends. They've made several attempts, and each time it's ended in nothing but resentment and heartbreak. There's only one person in the galaxy they can tolerate: the maybe magic, possibly robotic, _definitely_ homocidal parasite attached to their spine. Then again, it's been four hundred years - maybe Khaji Da has grown more than it lets on.  


* * *

**Fer Nessellar  
**

Zhr  
Female - None of your business  


Place of birth: North Wind City, Iroshar IV (September 18, 2355)  
Native language: Iroshan Standard Trade Langauge  
Age: 45  
Height: 5'9"  
Occupation: CEO of General Interplanetary  


Fer doesn't have much of a life outside the small interstellar transport company she helped start. But that's all right, because she has the best employees a boss could ask for. She values long-term stability over short-term profits and has a proven track record of adjusting to changing market conditions to prime her business for success.  


* * *

# Species

##  Zhr

The zhrs are an intelligent humanoid species native to Iroshar. Notable features include their antennae, their light blue skin, their large yellow eyes, and their tendency to get angry if you treat the name of their species as a proper noun.  


Although their outward appearance is insectoid, zhr biology is similar to human biology - with the exception of the brain, which scientists have likened to a Trill symbiote for the way it interacts with the body's nervous system.  


* * *

##  Sorquine

The undifferentiated substance that makes up a sorquine's outer layer can be found floating in certain regions of space. These bright-colored blobs attach themselves to other living beings, particularly those who have suffered major injuries and may be on the brink of death. If left alone, the substance will spread out to cover the host's entire body and take over the function of any damaged organs. This is what turns the host into a sorquine. It effectively brings them back to life, leaving them in full control of the new body. Most sorquines retain their memories, but even if they don't, their personality, interests, and skills will usually stay the same.  


It is believed that sorquines are native to a star system in the Klingon Empire. They say no Klingon dares do battle there for fear of being robbed of an honorable death.  


* * *

##  Monster  


Monsters are creatures whose life is tied to the latent psychic energy of their home. Their body and soul are maintained by this magical energy, which protects them from harm. However, they possess a weakness to this same magic, which other monsters - and even beings of other species - can easily take advantage of by casting spells and curses.

The history of this species is unknown even to them. They aren't native to the planet of Kaolack II - they didn't arrive there until after humans did - and yet some of them are thousands of years old. Their lives often seem tethered to the planet by some otherworldly energy that keeps them alive against all odds. Almost all of them have some singular obsession that forms the core of their identity and life's purpose; their pursuit of this obsession is heavily influenced by classic business literature ( _Good to Great_ is a favorite of Leaf's). The species has adopted the name "monster" and the French language as their own, and anthropologists have found very little trace of whatever original culture the species might have brought with them.  


Monsters often think about death; some monsters will even specify who should get to eat their body after they die. Refusing to eat a monster's flesh is considered an insult.


End file.
